A Pinteresting May

Snickerdoodle Brownies

Source: myownsweetthyme.com via Rebekah on Pinterest

So there's nothing like starting out a Pinterest recap with DESSERT, right? Right at the beginning of the month, I had the craziest work week I've had in MONTHS. I went in early, I stayed late, I had events to work, I worked through lunches, I worked from the couch at home at night...it was nuts. And by about mid-week, I felt like the worst wife because I hadn't been cooking and planning meals like I prefer to do. So while Ryan went to the gym one night, I made fajitas and then found this bit of goodness on Pinterest and gave it a try. SO good. I underbaked them just slightly and the warm brownie with the crispy sugar top and fudgy middle...I'm drooling. Here were mine:

Starbucks' Secret Menu

Source: foodbeast.com via Rebekah on Pinterest

So there's all kinds of debate out there in Pinterest land about whether or not Starbucks really has a secret menu or if this pin is just the ideas of baristas...but real or not, I pinned it when Ryan was looking for a new go-to drink at Starbucks. He'd tried 3 or 4 different things from the menu and nothing seemed perfect. So while we were on our birthday getaway, we both tried the Raspberry Cheesecake off of here and....YUM!! It's our new fave in the whole world.

Breakfast Pizza

Source: bornfreenorthernvirginia.blogspot.com via Rebekah on Pinterest

One night after Ryan and I got home from our weekend away, we needed a quick and yummy dinner, but we'd not been to the store, so we didn't have much in the house. I stopped at the store and picked up a can of crescent rolls and made a version of this. I spread a thin layer of Greek yogurt over the dough and then topped it with onion, pepper, bacon bits, scrambled eggs, and cheese. It was SO GOOD. My version....

New Printable for May

Source: jensownroad.blogspot.com via Rebekah on Pinterest

I couldn't find a printable for May, so I found this cute one about love and displayed it in our living room frame for the month of May! I printed ours in gray...and I loved it.

Our Pirogi 

Source: google.com via Rebekah on Pinterest

We decided to move ahead with our outdoor living space...and originally we planned to make a pergola like this one. In the end, lack of time and a pretty great gazebo at Lowe's made us change our mind, so ours looks a little different, but we love the privacy, the curtains, and the lights we will eventually add to match the one above!!

Fire Pit Upgrade 

Source: alwayschasinglife.blogspot.com via Rebekah on Pinterest

I had a fire pit already, but I had pinned this a while back as a possibility of a way to upgrade it. Ryan never even SAW the pin {because, as you might imagine, he doesn't hang out on Pinterest too much} but he made this very thing just last week! It's a quick, easy upgrade to an existing normal looking fire pit.

Make Your Own Stationery
 

Source: thedatingdivas.com via Rebekah on Pinterest

I was raised to send thank you notes for gifts, but when I went to purchase photo cards for my birthday thank you notes, I found NO sales...and I was too cheap to pay full price. So then I found this cool idea to make stationery, and I used a photo of the rose Ryan bought me for my birthday to make the thank you notes! Mine:

So that's been a Pinteresty Shafferland for May!

Six Months. Almost.

Dear Ryan...

Sunday is supposed to be sunny and warm...just like a certain Sunday six months ago. We'll share morning coffee...maybe in the pirogi, with a view slightly different from the sun-kissed sand we stared at while drinking coffee that Sunday morning.

I'll get ready for church and walk past a familiar white dress hanging from the closet door, just like it was that day, but this Sunday it will keep hanging there, and I'll choose something else...slightly more comfortable...for the day.

Six months. And it feels like life has always been like this. {And I mean that in a very good way.} That we've always started our day studying the Bible and praying together...that you've always made my coffee and hidden a peanut butter and honey sammich inside a paper towel for me to eat during my commute. That the evening hasn't really started until you've walked through the door to have dinner with me before we launch into our chores for the night.

And yet I'm always aware of my spirit of gratitude that you chose me. That you work so hard to provide for us - even when it's inconvenient for you. That you scratch my back when I'm tired and you hold my hand during prayer. That you always say I love you before you hang up the phone and that you still want to talk to me during our commute, even though you just saw me...or are about to see me again.

I love the way you still plan dates for us and make it a priority to have a weekly date night - even in the most hectic of weeks. I love the way you understand the importance of the words Can you take a picture?...and you never complain when I pause life for a moment to capture it for a memory. I love the way you've given me the freedom to change our eating habits so I can be more successful in maintaining my weight loss. I love the way you know when I'm struggling with my weight and you take extra moments out to call me beautiful and look me in the eye so I know you mean it.

I love making up words with you {like betrothing and pirogi} and treating them as though they always meant what we say they mean. I love car karaoke to 500 Miles while using a water bottle for a microphone. I love Starbucks dates and evening walks and your gracious willingness to help me work out even though I'm a liability to your skill level. I love praying with you, all cuddled up in your arms, and I love it when you call in to Mid-Morning to shoot the breeze with me on the air. I love the way you Riverdance to the Rend Collective Experiment so I can get through the song and the way you do my silly hand dance along with me because it is the extent of my talent.

I love watching you talk to my parents and love knowing you've embraced them as more than MIL and FIL...but that they're your family too. And I love watching them consider you another son in their family. I love your big, big heart for service {oh, how much I have to learn from you on that one} - and how you'll drop EVERYTHING to take care of someone in need. And I love traversing the countryside with you while you do just that.

I love the songs you learn just to surprise me with a solo when I'm not expecting it. I love the roses - even when they die a day later because the company sent a bouquet that betrothed you. I love notes in my lunch box, a full gas tank, and the surprise Polar pops that sometimes show up with you after work. You spoil me.

Life with you is sweet. You make me laugh until I can't breathe, you hold me when I cry {sorry that's so often}, and you know my heart in ways no one else ever has. You give me permission to be me...and you challenge me to do more than I think I can.

And that's all in just the first six months.

Let's be Carl and Ellie. Let's live an adventure to the very end. I love you. So much.

~ AS ~

Worth it Wednesday #7

I remember learning this story from Beth Moore...and I think I heard her tell it in a teaching video, rather than reading it in one of her books...but either way, it stuck with me. She was telling about a time her daughter was in love with a guy, and if I'm not mistaken, everyone was sure he was the one...and then the relationship ended. Beth told how her daughter was so devastated by the loss that she was in bed for days and Beth and her husband took turns sitting with her, watching movies, and praying her heart would recover.

If I could remember the exact quote, this story would be so much better, but one day Beth asked her husband if he thought things would ever improve for their daughter and he said he was confident they would...that their daughter had the strength of a lion and one day, she would roar again. And sure enough, in a fleeting glimpse, the day came when Beth and Keith heard the tiniest roar from her....the tiniest bit of the daughter they knew...and their hearts were comforted that she would be okay.

Obviously I've done a poor job of relaying the story the way Beth told it {and really, who can tell a Beth story except BETH?} but what I've always remembered from that illustration was that strength begins with a small roar. And it grows from there.

And I'm so excited to say that whether or not you can see this from your vantage point in my life, I've heard a tiny roar. I've seen improvement in my heart. And that makes me unbelievably happy. Still a long way to go in fully grasping worth...but it's there. It's rising up.

And here's how I know.

While perusing my Pinterest boards this week, I ran across this list that I pinned a long time ago:

Source: theaccidentalexecutive.tumblr.com via Rebekah on Pinterest

I glanced at it and my heart surged...because I could answer the first six suggestions positively. Obviously this is a generic list that doesn't center on the Lord, but I've modified some of the measuring sticks to better fit my own life. And here's what I've observed:

1. Know Yourself. The last seven weeks of walking this road with you have pushed me to get to know...me. To do a full examination of my heart and mind, to uncover, discover, sometimes rediscover what God has created me to love and why.

2. Understand What Makes You Feel Great. Right after my trip to Cincinnati earlier this month, I marched right in to the salon and said, "Chop it off." I'd been growing my hair to try to look younger and because every guy loves long hair, right? I think Ryan loves whatever hair doesn't make me stand in the bathroom every morning shouting "I HATE MY HAIR!" What made me feel great about myself was a haircut I could manage in under an hour...and the old one wasn't cutting it. So I cut it. Same thing has happened with some of my clothes lately. If it doesn't make me feel great, I don't wear it.

3. Recognize Things that Get You Down. And I would add to that...change them. I recognized that my eating and exercising patterns were getting me down, making me frustrated, and not helping me feel better about myself. So I changed them. And since I've changed those habits, I've felt much better physically and in turn, felt much better about myself.

4. Set Goals to Achieve What You Want. Well, for me, the modified version is setting goals to achieve what I feel God calling me to do. I've been a longtime fan of goal setting, and I do love doing it.

5. Develop Trusting Friendships that Make You Feel Good. Of course there are friendships that challenge you and push you - and those are good too. I appreciate my friends that aren't afraid to give me a gentle kick in the seat of the pants, but I also have had some friendships that were just...toxic. People whose words and decisions pull me down. And I've begun to learn that you can be kind and loving toward those people, without inviting them into your inner circle of life...and it's okay to hold them at bay. I've been so fortunate to have so many relationships that have lasted years and years - and even though I don't get to see or talk to those friends as often anymore, they're still great influences, and I treasure the times I do get with them. And I'm blessed to get to make new friends along the way, too. I used to feel a sense of obligation to keep all friends in an intimate circle of knowledge, but I've been learning it's okay to let the unhealthy ones sit back a bit.

6. Don't Be Afraid to Ask for Help. I balked at this for years...mostly because I believed I wasn't worth bothering other people. Being married to Ryan has been a huge source of God-ordained healing in my heart in this area, because he's made it safe for me to ask for help. And when he reaches out and helps me, he builds confidence in me that I'm worth helping and it's okay to admit my need.

As for the rest...well...those need some work. But I hear the tiny roar of being over halfway through a list upon which, I used to scored a 0%. God is working and moving! And I love it.

And for you, my worthy-of-love friend, how are you doing? Do you know you're worth these things? Do you know the strength is in you and if you listen closely...you might hear a tiny roar?

Countertop Overhaul

I am not a DIY'er. And this is not a DIY blog. But I got several questions on Facebook about how this whole counter top painting thing works, so I thought I'd do a post about it!

The first dinner-at-home invitation Ryan and I received after we started dating was at our friends Adam and Sara's house. {The same Adam and Sara who were in our wedding.} They had done some work on their house, including an overhaul of their counter tops...which they had done themselves, using this paint kit.

The kit is from a company called Giani, and they actually sell different kits in different colors. We went with Sicilian Sand. The kit runs right at $70, and you get all the paint, a sponge, two rollers {and a handle for them} and a little foam brush.

Okay. So here's the deal. We have a small kitchen. It's a galley kitchen. {I like to call it a butler's kitchen because it sounds fancier pantsier, but it's really a galley kitchen.} My grandparents were the last to update the kitchen...in the 80's. And you know...the 80's were a while ago. So it was just time for an update. But as you know, kitchen updates are costly. So we're trying to update the room on a budget.

Here's a section of our counter as it appeared before the updates.

 And in case you can't fully appreciate it...here's a close up.



Not horrible, by any stretch, but just...80's.

So we got to remodeling!!! The prep work took a bit of time. We actually are doing quite a bit of other work on the kitchen too, so we spent time hauling most everything out of the kitchen, including two sections of cabinetry/counter tops that are not attached to the wall. We put those in the dining room.

We started by hard core cleaning and repair work. We had to clean off the counters really well - to make sure there was no dirt or residue left behind. And Ryan tried to fix some of the end pieces that had come apart.

And then...the taping. We taped off the walls behind the counters and taped some paper onto the cabinets below to protect them from any dripping paint in the process. The worst part was taping around the sink with all its curvy edges and such.

The paper also doubles as a way to leave each other love notes if you want to spice it up a bit:

The first painting step is a primer. In our kit, the primer was black and resembled chalkboard paint. My job was to go along and use the foam brush to get the corners, along the backsplash, behind the sink {and any other tiny areas} and check for areas that needed a bit of an extra touch.

Ryan came along behind me and used the roller to roll on the primer. {If you're doing the project by yourself, they recommend that you do two foot sections of the counter at a time, so your paint from one step doesn't dry before getting to the second step. We were able to skip that method since there were two of us.}

This step actually went pretty quickly. The paint went on nice and thick...and it does start drying right away. We had to let this step dry for 8 hours before moving on, so we did it in the evening and let it dry overnight.

The next day, we started the sponging process. This is what gives it the granite look. There are three colors in the kit. {In our kit, they were brown, gold - which was really tan, not like GOLD gold - and white.} I was scared TO DEATH to start this part...because if I messed up and we had to start over, it was going to cost us another 8 hours!! This first little section of cabinet took forever because I was so scared, but once we got going, we figured out a groove and it really went pretty quickly!

So the brown was the first step, and here's what it looked like with just the brown.

We didn't have to wait for that to dry to do the second sponging step....which was the gold...and here's what it looked like after that:

 And then the white on top. {You can put on as little or as much as you want to achieve the look you like.}

 Once all the sponging was done, we had to wait four hours for that to dry...and then we could apply the first layer of top coat. {Oh...we had to go over it quickly with a light sandpaper first just to smooth down any peaks of dried paint.} The top coat was a translucent looking paint that we rolled and sponged on the same way we did the black primer coat.

 And here is our new kitchen counter top look!!

The next day, we put on a second layer of primer just for extra sealing, and it dried in about four hours too. Just so you know, within a day or so, you're able to start using the counters again, but you're supposed to wait two weeks before doing any aggressive cleaning.

There it is...before and after! We are SO pleased with the results. For $70 and one weekend of work, our counters look brand new and we are so excited to see how they look with all the other budget-friendly kitchen renovations we're doing.

Bottom line - we would say if you're looking for a way to spruce up your kitchen without spending a fortune, this is a great investment. Adam and Sara's kitchen looks great over a year later and they've had no problems with the finish, so we're looking forward to enjoying the same great results!

{Please excuse the paint can in the sink.}

A Weekend of Rest(oration)

You know those three day weekends...those glorious times when you find extra hours to just kick back...and rest...and enjoy...and eat s'mores around campfires...and grill out...and perhaps take a boat ride on the lake?

Know what I'm talking about?

Yeah, me neither.

I realize day three of said weekend is just beginning, but here's what Ryan and I have been up to so far.

* Doesn't everyone remove everything out of the kitchen on a regular basis? {Imaginary fridge on the left...imaginary cabinet under the lamp...and apparently the previous painter didn't care to move them ALL the way out to paint.}

 * Then there was the taping palooza....

 * And then the beginning of the counter top overhaul. More on this one to come.

 * All work and no play is no good for a marriage. So there's always time for a dip topped cone. {Which was almost a McDouble. Apparently the two sound the same to the manager of a local McDonald's.}

 * And then time to start sponging on the granite finish...I was scared outta my mind. What if I messed it up?

 * Hauling cars....

 * If you're going to rip up the kitchen, you might as well do the bathroom along with it, right?

 * And for good measure - do some quick landscaping projects....

 * Like make little pillars for the newly acquired ferns.

 * And put down an indoor/outdoor rug to dress up the pirogi. {That was my contribution.}

* And build a ring around the fire pit. {This photo taken from the comfort/safety of the hammock.}

 * And spray paint some hardware. {Ohhhhhh how happy the fumes make me.}

 * And apply top coat to the counter tops.

 * And SHOP!! He had the heavy cart.

 * And I had the light one. Mine actually got away from me while I was shopping and I didn't notice. An employee brought it to me and said, "Is this yours?" WOOPSIE!!!!

* And that's just a sampling of the weekend fun.

Rest...restoration of outdated homes...it's all the same, right?